UMBC Transit, a Department in the Division of Student Affairs, is funded by the University's
Transportation Fee, which is assessed to the student population based on credit hour. All
UMBC students, faculty, and staff are able to utilize UMBC Transit shuttle routes and services.
Your UMBC campus identity card is required for boarding .

Charter Services

Accessibility

Buses are equipped with wheelchair lifts or low floor ramps to allow easy access for Retrievers with disabilities.

Convenience and Technology

With over 300 stops, UMBC Transit provides a convenient and "green alternative" for
commuters and the residential population of UMBC. An important new tool is Transit Tracker,
which provides the rider with web-enabled, GPS locating of all route buses. This service
provides real time information for riders as they navigate their travels on UMBC Transit shuttle
buses.

UMBC Transit: Past, Present, and Future

In 1977 . . . UMBC Transit was born and known as UMBC Shuttle. The shuttle was a simple
single-van service, initially operated by the Residential Life Office and staffed by part-time
undergraduate students, which transported graduate students to campus from what we
now know as the Charlestown Retirement Community located off of Maiden Choice Lane in
Catonsville.

Over the next few years . . . as the population of commuting students at UMBC grew, the
Commuting Students Association, an active student committee in The Student Government
Association (SGA), elected to have a department established to specifically focus on developing
services designed to address the transportation needs of commuting students at UMBC. The
result was the advent of the Office of Commuter Affairs. The management and supervision of
the UMBC Shuttle transferred from the Residential Life Office to the Office of Commuter Affairs,
while the routing and staffing were broadened as a student fee support structure was being
developed. In addition to the regular shuttle service, a charter operation was established to
provide fee-based trips off-campus to further support expansion and also to provide broader
educational opportunities for the UMBC community.

In the late eighties . . . UMBC Shuttle became independent of the Office of Commuter Affairs,
focusing specifically on transportation needs only and reporting to the University Center, while
the social and programmatic affairs were placed with the newly created department of Off-Campus
Student Services (OCSS). Both areas were managed under the Division of Student Affairs.

From 2004 to the present day . . . UMBC shuttle and charter bus services evolved into UMBC
Transit. Based upon data gathered from annual assessments, customer requests, feedback,
and increased interaction with the SGA, the voices of the ridership resulted in unprecedented
operational improvement to the services offered. New routes were added and existing bus
stop shelters on campus were replaced with modern "green" solar powered units. Currently, the
fleet is comprised of state-of-the-art transit buses; the demand for additional staffing continues
to grow, and charter contracts to support our services continue to increase. Recently, UMBC
Transit married customer access with convenience in the form of Transit Tracker, a real-time,
GPS driven application, providing riders with convenient up-to-the-minute access of current
shuttle bus locations from any web accessible computer or mobile device.

The future . . . is full of promise. UMBC Transit, in support of the campus Climate Change
Task Force, focuses on reducing UMBC's carbon footprint by providing fuel efficient shuttle
buses through fleet renewal and the development of more convenient routes based on the
needs of those students, faculty, and staff living near campus within the reachable range
of shuttle services. Continued integration of new technologies to improve the reliability and
convenience of our shuttle schedules is also emphasized. Commuter connection points
with other mass transit providers as well as increased ridership take center stage among our
priorities as we continue moving forward.